Feyenoord to KNVB Cup semifinals after rough night in Heerenveen

Feyenoord are through to the semifinals of the KNVB Cup after a minimal 1-0 win at sc Heerenveen. Mexican striker Santiago Gimenez crowned himself matchwinner eleven minutes before time in a game with few major chances.

Tomorrow there are two more duels in the quarter-finals, ADO Den Haag against PSV and De Graafschap hosting Ajax. Earlier, the amateurs from Spakenburg won very surprisingly and spectacularly at FC Utrecht.

In the Eredivisie, Feyenoord is on top, Heerenveen is leading the right-hand row, tenth in other words. That difference was not noticeable in the well-filled Abe Lenstra stadium at first.

Heerenveen put pressure early and aggressively and had the ball more than Feyenoord. In the fifth minute that led to the first chance of the match, a shot by Sydney van Hooijdonk was caught by Feyenoord goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther.

Feyenoord, who started in the same formation as in Sunday’s 4-2 Eredivisie game against Fortuna Sittard, got a better grip on the game after that, although it did not create any real chances. The first Feyenoord shot, from Alireza Jahanbakhsh in the nineteenth minute, sailed high over.

After almost half an hour of play, a big chance for Heerenveen arose after Feyenoord captain Orkun Kükcü stepped on the ball and tripped. Rami Al Hajj ran with the ball, played it off to Van Hooijdonk, who then shot hastily into the side netting one-on-one with Wellenreuther. It turned out to be the biggest chance before halftime.

After halftime, the Rotterdammers started brighter, with an immediate header chance for striker Santiago Giménez. The Mexican’s effort went over. Despite the rebound, the second half continued where it left off: a brighter and stronger Heerenveen that put Feyenoord under high pressure.

A header by Quilindschy Hartman, after a long attack, was caught by Heerenveen goalkeeper Xavier Mous. Still the replacement for the injured Andries Noppert.

For a moment the teams seemed to be preparing for an extension, until Gimenez slid the ball under Mous eleven minutes before time. The striker was played into the box by Danilo after a beautiful combination that also involved Jahanbakhsh: 0-1.

Whereas Heerenveen were often dominant before the 1-0, the Frisians failed to create a final offensive. Even substitutions accomplished nothing for coach Kees van Wonderen, putting an end to the cup season for the Frisians.